Checkrow wire anchor



Nov. 9, v1954 Filed April 24, 1950 z. H. WILLIAM-s 2,693,777

CHECKROW WIRE ANCHOR 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Nov. 9, 1954 z. H. WILLIAMS CHECKROW WIRE ANCHOR 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 24, 1950 ww Q. QM

WWW/1.255

Nov. 9, 1954 z. H. wsLLlAMs 2,693,777

CHECKROW WIRE ANCHOR Filed April 24, 1950 A 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Nov. 9, 1954 z. H. WILLIAMS 2,593,777

cHEcKRow WIRE ANCHOR Filed April 24, 1950 4 Sheets-Shes?l 4 www. 2M ffmmfg Unitedl States Patent Gce 2,693,777 Patented Nov. 9, 1954 CHECKROW WIRE ANCHOR Zebie H. Williams, Barnes City, Iowa Application April 24, 1950, Serial No. 157,835

3 Claims. (Cl. 111-49) My invention relates to theart of Vplanting corn in rows aligned in two directions across the field and known in the art as checkrow planting. Specifically, my invention is a means of anchoring the checkrow wire so that the position of the anchor may be changed without leaving the tractor or other prime mover;y

For many years it was considered essential to checkrow corn so that cultivation could be carried on in both directions across the rows. This is known as cross-cultivation. While there are those who now feel that crosscultivation is not important, there are others who still consider that it is desirable. It would seem, therefore, that there is at least some reason for believing checkrowing to be desirable. Of late, however, a new and cogent reason has developed that favors checkrow planting. This new reason has resulted from the use of mechanical cornpickers. Since these mechanical pickers are rather large and bulky, considerable space is necessary at the ends of rows to maneuver the machine for a start down a new row. Economical use of the land, however, requires-that rows be planted clear to each side of the ield. It is necessary before starting with the mechanical picker, therefore, in a regular manner up and down the rows, to execute a process known as opening up the eld. Opening the iield is accomplished byy picking several rows around the perimeter of the iield so that the rows remaining have considerable clearance at each side of the field to permit the proper maneuvering of the tractor and picker during turns. lf the rows of corn are not aligned across the field it is difficult or even impossibleto open the field with a mechanical picker. When a mechanical pickercannot be used, therefore, it is necessary to resort to the old manual picking of the corn to open the field. lf the rows are properly aligned as is the case with checkrowing, however, the field may be opened with a mechanical picker thus saving hours of time and much labor.

Checkrowing before now has been a laborious process. The 'method by which the corn is planted is to use a planter having an automatic trip arm on it. A rope, or morerecently a wire, is stretched across the field and securedl at each end by means of a stake. As the planter is moved across the field, the wire or rope is guided to be near the trip. Atpredetermined intervals on the wire or rope, there were enlarged portions which when they contactedthe trip, moved it and caused the planter to` drop seed. Obviously, every time the operator approached the end of the field it was necessary to dismount from the machine and move the stakes se-` curing the wire. This was labor enough, but in addition it has been found that unless the wire was pulled to the'same degree of tightnesseach time a stake was moved, the planting of the-corn was somewhat irregular. Furthermore, the planter itself had to be adjusted to properly cooperate with a wire or rope of a given tension. Any variation in the tightness ofthe wire in comparison to the adjustment of the planter caused irregularities which'destroyed, or at least reduced the effectiveness of the' checkrowing. Nevertheless, checkrowing is valuable enough that in some instances at least it is still used. A good example of this being in the case of the four-row planter. In using such a large planter, it is economically sound to carry two men on the device during operation. The second man is primarily deadweight during kthe actual-planting process and his services are required only at'fthe end of each row. At that time his job vis to dismount and move the stake.

In spite of the fact that'his services are extremely limited vin l terms of the total amount of time spent inplanting, the large number of rows which could be planted in a singleiday make` his services valuable. Itlis not economical to proceed withtwo men on smaller planters. The fact that `this system of checkrow planting is used at'all, however, is evidenceof its continuing desirability.

In View of'thesey difficulties and shortcomings of the' prior art, it is the principal object ofmy invention to provide an anchor for a checkrow wire that maybemoved by the operator-without dismounting from the tractor or-the like; It 'is another object of myinventionV to provide -sucha checkwireanchor-which allows -the wire to play out as-the tractor turns at the endof the field. It is the still further objectV of my invention Vto provide such a checkwire anchor that/reels in-wire as the anchor is moved into position `behind the tractor as it starts a new row.v It is the 'further objectof my in vention to-provide such a checkwire anchor which holdsthe wire at a predetermined tension.y It is still the furtherobject of my invention to provide such a checkwire'anf chor that is automatically` aligned' behind fthe tractor and planter as each new row is started.` lt is yetanother object of my invention to provide a checkwire` anchorI that is durable in use and economical of manufacture.`

These and other objects will be apparent to those skilledf in the art.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangel' ment, and combination ofthev various 'parts of the device, whereby the objects -contemplatedare attained asA hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in my claims; and illustrated inthe accompanying drawings, in-whichz Fig. l is a top View 'of a tractor supporting-and draw` ing a checkrow corn planter as it approaches `the end of a row. A fragment ofmy checkwire anchor is also shown in broken linesillustrating the unlocking ofthev wire guide reel to permit the checkwire to playout dur` ing the turn.

Fig. 2 is a similar'view to thatof Fig. 1,'but-with the tractor'and planter in a partially turnedl positionand` having moved my wire anchor a portion of the' distance necessary to align it fore the neXt row.'

Fig. 3 is a similar View to that of Figs. l and 2 exceptv that the tractor with planter attached-has now completed the turn and aligned my checkwire anchorY behind it. This is the position of the device as a new row-is begun.

Fig. 4 is a side View of my checkwire anchor taken onV the'line `4*4 of Fig. 3. A fragment of the Aframeis broken away to more fully illustrate itsy construction."A

Fig. 5 is a detailed view of the wire guide reel takenon'the line 5-5 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 6 lis a detailed View of `the means for raising the= planter to an inoperative position and taken on the line 6 6 of Fig. l.

Fig. 7 is a detailed view of the sled runnersupport for" one side of my checkwire anchor.

Referring to the drawings the numerall 10 designatesW a prime mover such as a tractor or the like, with a checkrow planter 11V rigidly secured ythereto with respect to lateral movement. The planter is free to move up and down by being hingedly secured at bearing points 12',

however. Checkwire carrier 13is slidably pivotable onA tracks 14 which are generally U-shaped' and extend around the rear portion'of the planter. The numeral 15 designates a flexible member-such as a rope Vor the like that is reeved over guides 16 from the row guide indicators 17 and rigidly secured near its center vtowire carrier 13. Near each end of tracks 14 are trips 18 of conventional forked type through-which wire'19l slides so that lugs 20 engage` trips -18-to actuate a conventional corn planting means supplied with grain by hoppers"21. f The bulk of the weight of the planter while it is operating rides on wheels 22 which are rotatably mounted on the frame. The planter may be raised to an inoperativeA position by any appropriate meansnsuch as a hydraulicpower mechanism, standard onmost modern tractors;- connccted to lever arm 23. This lever-armhas -an-veye.-l 24 formed near its rear end that connects ywith crank` arm 25. The `crank arm 25 pivots at bearing point 26 y Ato engage and raise track'14l and consequently wire guide 13 which carries wire 19 to a plane above trip lever 18 whenever the operator wishes to stop the operation of the planting mechanism as when a turn is being executed. Lever arm 23 also raises planter 11 by pulling on ear 27. Spring 28 disposed between the end of lever arm 23 and ear 27 provides shock absorbing properties to planter 11 with respect to the tractor or like, when the planter is in a raised position. While the track and wire carrier means on the planter are perhaps not conventional since they have little or no value with present checkrow planting technique, the general structure of the sliding wire guide is known to be old and is described in detail out of necessity to make clear the association of my device with the planter.

I will now describe those parts of my invention that are mounted on the prime mover and planter. At the rear of the planter, an aligning member designated 29 is rigidly secured thereto. This aligning member is U-shaped in cross-section and positioned with its open side facing toward the left when viewed from the rear. At its inner end aligning member 29 is closed to form a box section by short side 30. The operation of this member will be described later as it can only be made clear when the structure and form of my anchor is explained. Secured to the forward end of the tractor or like is boom 31. An anchor engaging member 32 is rigidly formed at the forward end of boom 31. At the rear end of said boom is a means for swivelly attaching it to the frame of the tractor or like comprising eye 33 hooked through ring 34. The ring is rigidly secured to the tractor frame. A boom supporting member 35 is rigidly secured at both sides of the forward end of the prime mover and disposed below boom 31. The cross member on which boom 31 rests is arcuate in shape and has its lowest point at the center.

My anchor which is the major portion of my invention is generally supported by a main frame member formed` from a single tube designated 36. This tube extends straight upwardly in a shallow hook from a ground engaglng curved prong 37. Platform 38 is positioned at the top of prong 37 and extends laterally in all directions to prevent prong 37 from imbedding itself too deeply in the ground. From the hook at the forward end tube 36 extends rearwardly to bend point 39, at which point is secured aligning arm 40. This aligning arm extends toward the field on which the anchor is being used during normal operations and is secured to the frame by means of bracket 41. Spring 42 yieldingly holds arm 40 at substantially right angles to tube 36 since it is secured to spring support 43 that is rigid with respect to bracket Y 41. It will be noted, however, that aligning arm is pivotally secured in the bracket by pin 44 extending through appropriate holes in bracket 41 of the arm. From bend point 39, tube 36 extends at a slight angle away from aligning arm 40 to a second bend point 45 and then parallel to its first line of extension. An L- shaped tube member 46 has its short leg secured to tube 36 and its long leg extending parallel thereto an equal distance to that of the rear portion of tube 36. A third frame tube 47 is appropriately secured to tube 36 at the opposite side from that to which tube 46 is secured. From the point at which it is appropriately fastened as by welding or the like, tube 47 curves outwardly, then back toward tube 36 and passes directly across the free ends of tubes 36 and 46 and is rigidly secured thereto by any appropriate means as by welding or the like. A continuation of tube 47 passes beyond tube 46 to bend point 48 at which point it turns back toward the front of the frame and substantially parallel to tubes 46 and 36 for a distance. At still another bend point 49 the free,

end of tube 47 bends downwardly and rearwardly, then upwardly and rearwardly to form a sled runner 50 that supports one side of the frame. The other side of the frame is supported by wheel 51 that is rigidly secured to shaft 52 which is itself appropriately journaled to rotate in tubes 36 and 47 as shown in Fig. 3. The spikes 53 which are rigidly xed to the rim of wheel 51 and extend radially therefrom provide a non-slip traction means between wheel 51 and the surface over which it may be moved. The pulley wheel designated 54 is fastened to the end of shaft 52 and, therefore, is provided with turning moment by any rotating movement of wheel 51. A second shaft 55 is rotatably journaled in tubes 36 and 46 some distance in front of shaft 52. A storage reel 56 is xed at one end of shaft 55 and a second pulley wheel designated 57 similarly secured to its other end. A belt 58 is reeved over these pulleys 54 and 57 but is loose thereon to allow slippage. Crank arm 59 is appropriately pivoted to frame member 36 at bearing point 60 and carries idler 61 at one end and roller 62 at its other. Spring pressure yieldingly forces idler 61 down on to belt 58 by exerting force on arm 59 so that the pulleys 54 and 57 are operatively associated thereby. The spring is designated by the numeral 75. Any surplus of checkwire 19 is stored on reel 56 and the wire being used extends therefrom over roller 62 and is reeved around guide reel 63. As is shown clearly in Fig. 2, guide reel 63 is disposed at right angles to storage reel 56 and is rotatably mounted on the guide reel support arm 64. As shown clearly in Fig. 5, arm 64 itself is hingably secured to a frame tube designated 76 secured to frame member 36 and extends in the opposite direction from the frame as the aligning arm. Thisframe tube member provides a support for bearing point 65 clearly shown in Fig. 5. It should be noted that this point is located directly in line with the outer edge of` guide reel 63 so that the height of the portion of the guide reel over the hinge point is changed little or none by any pivoting action at bearing point 65. A lock arm support designated 66 is rigidly secured to guide reel support arm 64 and carries a socket 67 at its `outer end. Lock arm 68 is laterally pivotable in socket 67 and extends straight upwardly therefrom for a distance and then outwardly at right angles toward tube 36 and beyond it. Spring 69 holds lock arm 68 so that ratchet pawl 70 yieldingly engages with ratchet sprocket 71. Sprocket 71 is rigidly secured to guide reel 63 so that if the sprocket is held at one position, the guide reel is similarly restrained. As shown in Fig. 5, wire 19 is embraced by the V-shape of guide reel 63, and I have found that the wire 19 will not slip over the surface of reel 63. Thus when the reel is locked the wire is locked also and cannot be payed out or reeled in. This is the purpose served by the locking mechanism, and it holds the wire solidly against the pull exerted by the planter. At the outer end of lock arm 68 is wire guide eye 72 through which the wire 19 extends to the planter wire carrier 13, which has already been described.

In operation, one of my anchors is placed at each side of the field to be planted. The wire is stretched between them and through wire carrier 13 on the planter. The proper tension is applied to the wire manually and the planter lowered to the ground ready for operation.

. The proper tension is readily achieved by placing one anchor correctly and the other some little distance fromk the place it will occupy when the planting is started.

- The anchor is then moved manually over the ground toward the point where planting will commence. Wheel,

51 will reel up wire to the correct tension. Experienced check row operators may apply the proper tension by simply pulling sidewise on one of the anchors until the tension on the wire is correct. It is also possible to position correctly the anchor, block wheel 51 off the ground; and turn it manually until belt 58 begins to slip which will indicate the application of correct tension. As the tractor proceeds across the eld towing the planter, wire 19 passing through carrier 13 engages trips 18 so that lugs 20 actuate the mechanism to plant corn at predetermined intervals. As the tractor approaches the far side of the eld, the wire carrier exerts a side pull on wire 19 which is transmitted to lock arm 68. The lock arm being free to pivot, moves outwardly and allows sprocket 71 to become disengaged from lock arm 68. Guide reel 63 is then free to` rotate and wire 19 pays out. Belt 58 of connecting pulleys 57 and 54 tends to prevent paying out of wire 19. When tension on wire 19 reaches a predetermined value, however, the pressure on roller 62 is great enough to overcome the spring pressure of crank arm 59, causing it to pivot at bearing point 60. tension of idler 61 on belt 58 thus permitting wire to pay out until tension again falls below the predetermined value. It will aslo be noted, however, that wire carrier 13 is higher than eye 72 and exerts an upward force on it. The lifting movement transmitted to arm 68y from eye 72, however, is absorbed by pivoting action of the guide reel support arm 64 at bearing point 65. As was pointed out earlier, this action does not interfere with the guiding of reel 63 because the bearing point 65 isA located directly below the outer edge of the guide reel'.

This movement of the crank arm releases Simultaneouslyv with'the preceding actiong'theft'ractor Vor like, is guided so that the anchor engaging member boom 31 pivots to one side of support member 3S.

Since the sides of support member 3S are higher than its center, there is a lifting action to anchor engaglng member 32. This lifting movement raises prong 37 out of the ground and permits the anchor to be moved. Continued turning of the ltractor causes some forward movement to the anchor but it is not moved the total distance necessary to align the tractor and planter for the next planting row.

As the anchoris moved by boom 31 in the direction of the tractor andl planter, wheel 51 is rotated because it is in contact with the ground and in turn rotates pulley 54 in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 4. This turning movement of pulley 54 is transmitted to pulley 57 by the belt and causes storage reel 56 to rotate also in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 4. Since the wire leaves the storage reel from the bottom side, a clockwise action of the reel tends to roll wire 19 on to the reel, thus taking up any slack as the anchor and planter move closer together. As the rear end of planter swings around, the arm 40 becomes engaged with aligning member 29 so that the extremity of arm 40 is engaged by the short side 30 of the aligning member secured to the planter. As the aligning member 29 engages arm 40, they are at a considerable angle with respect to each other. Spring 42 permits arm 40 to move in response to force exerted by aligning member 29 and as the tractor continues its turn, the arm and the aligning member gradually assume positions in respect to each other that place them in a substantially straight line. As the two elements straighten, the end of arm 4t) must slide along the aligning member 29 which causes the end of arm 40 to become engaged by short side 30 of the aligning member. As the arm 40 has been pulled outwardly at an angle by overcoming the tension of spring 42, the arm and tractor are disposed at an angle to the wire anchor. Inexpert guiding of the tractor may cause the end of arm 40 to fail to be caught by short side 30. In the event that such should be the case, the tractor may have to be backed or operated in a reverse direction to so engage the arm and short side 30. This backing will be in an angular direction with respect to the anchor proper, however, as the arm 40 will have been moved against the tension of spring 42 into such an angular position by aligning member 29. The nal turning of the tractor causes a lever action to be exerted with the outer end of aligning member 29 serving as a fulcrum, thus bringing the anchor into the proper position directly behind the planter ready for the next row. If the tractor is so carelessly or inexpertly guided as to cause aligning member 29 to avoid arm 40 altogether, the anchor will have to be advanced manually. This last movement of the anchor causes further rotation of wheel 51 which through its associated pulleys 54 and 57 by means of belt 58 turns reel 56 and takes up any remaining slack in wire 19. Since the wire 19 passes over roller 62 which in turn controls storage reel 56, the checkwire is always drawn to a predetermined tension.

When the tractor is ready to start the return trip across the field as shown in Fig. 3, it will be noted that lock arm 68 is now back in its straight extending position so that pawl 70 is engaging sprocket 71 under tension from spring 69. Thus wire 19 is locked and the proper tension created by the reeling mechanism will be maintained. At the side of the eld from which the planting was originally started, a second unit, identical to the one just described, is arranged so that similar steps to those just described are repeated at the end of each row. It should be clear by this time that if the tractor is maneuvered correctly, it is never necessary for the operator to leave the tractor to move the checkwire anchor.

lt should also be explained that while the tractor is turning with the planter and moving the anchor by means of boom 31 and the aligning member 29, wire carrier 13 is automatically sliding around to track 14 to assume the correct position for the next row. As the carrier turns it exerts a pulling force on the exible member 15 which changes the position of indicator row guides 17 so that the appropriate one extends from the planter to mark the location of the next succeeding row. It can be seen therefore that with the wire switching means and the v56 unique tractor controlled anchor` for the CIeCk-WrePthat the operator is permitted to use the checkwire-system -without loss of time and leaving the tractor toI move the Gstakes. It will also be noted that not only may be operator so control theanchor but that one man is sucient to operate my system which makes checkrowing practical for small units. Furthermore, since my tension controlling mechanism always` tightensthe checkwire to the same value, the results achievedwith my system will be uniform and therefore of greater value than is the case with manually moved stakes in checkrowing.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of my corn planter and checkrowing mechanism therefor without departing from the real spirit and purpose of my invention, and it is my intention to cover by my claims, any modified forms of structure or use of mechanical equivalents which may be reasonably included within their scope.

I claim:

1. In a wire anchor for checkrow corn planters, a wire tensioning mechanism, comprising, a frame, a spiked wheel rotatably secured to said frame, a pulley xed to said wheel, a shaft rotatably journaled on said frame, a wire storage reel xed to one end of said shaft, a pulley fixed to the other end of said shaft, a belt loosely ernbracing said pulleys, a crank arm pivotally mounted on said frame to move in a vertical plane, an idler rotatably mounted on one end of said crank arm, a roller rotatably mounted on the other end of said crank arm, said storage reel adapted to receive a checkrow wire and positioned relative to said roller so that the wire leaving said storage wheel engages said roller, a resilient means yieldingly urging said crank arm in a direction that brings said idler into contact with said belt, whereby said belt is yieldingly tightened; said wheel being constructed and arranged to engage a surface over which said anchor is moved; a wire guide secured to said frame and directing the wire leaving said storage wheel and trained over said roller to assume a path that will cause pressure to be exerted on said roller when said wire is pulled taut.

2. A checkrow planter wire anchor comprising, a frame, a rearwardly curving ground piercing prong rigidly secured to the forward end of said frame, a platform stop interposed between said prong and said frame, a hook formed in said frame above said platform, a hingedly mounted aligning arm extending substantially at right angles from said frame, a spring for yieldingly holding said aligning arm at substantially right angles to said frame, a rst shaft rotatably mounted in said frame, a spiked ground engaging wheel xed to one end of said rst shaft, a pulley rigidly secured to the other end of said first shaft, a second shaft rotatably mounted on said frame, a wire storage reel xed to one end of said second shaft, a second pulley xed to the other end of said second shaft, a belt loosely reeved around said rst and second pulleys, a crank arm hingedly mounted on said frame, an idler rotatably mounted on one end of said crank arm, a roller rotatably mounted on the other end of said crank arm, said idler positioned to contact said belt, a spring secured to said frame and said crank arm and yieldingly forcing said idler to apply pressure on said belt, an auxiliary frame member secured to said frame and positioned farther from said storage reel than said roller, an L-shaped arm hingedly secured by one end to said auxiliary frame; said L-shaped arm hinged to move in a vertical arc, a straight arm secured to said auxiliary frame member and extending therefrom in a direction away from said roller, a socket secured to the free end of said straight arm, a guide reel rotatably mounted on said L-shaped arm to rotate in a horizontal plane, a ratchet sprocket secured to said guide reel, a

lock arm pivotally secured in said socket, a pawl secured to said lock arm, a spring secured to said lock arm and said L-shaped arm yieldingly urging said lock arm toward said ratchet sprocket whereby said pawl engages said ratchet wheel at times, said lock arm having an eye formed on it; said storage reel adapted to receive a wire that is trained over said roller, around said guide reel and through the eye of said lock arm; whereby when said wire is pulled in a direction away from said storage reel, said lock arm is moved to release said guide reel and tension on said wire yieldingly forces said roller down to move said idler away from said belt; and whereby as said frame is moved forwardly over a surface and said wire becomes slack said spiked wheel will cause said belt tor'otate, thus rotating said storage reel to windv up excess wire.

3. A checkrow planter wire anchor designed to be supported by and moved over a surface, a frame, a spiked wheel rotatably mounted on said frame and contacting a supporting surface, a storage reel rotatably mounted on said frame, a iirst pulley wheel secured to said spiked wheel, a second pulley wheel secured to said storage reel, a belt loosely embracing said rst and second pulley wheels, a crank arm hingedly mounted on said frame, an idler Wheel rotatably mounted on one end of said crank arm, a roller rotatably mounted on the other end of said crank arm, a spring means for yieldingly forcing said idler into Contact with said belt, a horizontally positioned guide reel rotatably secured'to said frame; a means secured to said frame for yieldingly locking said guide reel at times; said storage reel receiving a portion of a wire, said wire extending from said storage reell over References `Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 10,607 Fisher Mar. 7, 1854 329,255 Barlow Oct. 27, 1885 376,308 Johnson Jan. l0, 1888 461,707 Parker Oct. 20, 1891 875,794 Farley Ian. 7, 1908 1,334,361 Elsinger et al. Mar. 23, 1920 1,806,389 Dickerson May 19, 1931 2,544,260 Engebretson Mar. 6, 1951 

